Question 1

One common goal of sociology and social psychology is to understand __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  how individuals function in modern society 
B)  the processes of society at large 
C)  how individuals are influenced by other people 
D)  the influence of social factors on human behavior

Question 2

In commenting on the development of social psychology in the U.S., Dorwin Cartwright (1979) wrote, "If I were required to name the one person who has had the greatest impact on the field, it would have to be Adolf Hitler." By this he meant that __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  Hitler's Mein Kampf was a philosophical treatise that influenced psychology 
B)  Gestalt psychology came to the U.S. when Gestalt psychologists fled the Nazi regime 
C)  Hitler used social-psychological principles to control the citizens of Germany 
D)  World War II stimulated the U.S. economy, and there was more research funding for psychologists

Question 3

You might have heard the old Groucho Marx quip, "I wouldn't belong to any club that would have me for a member." From a self-esteem perspective in social psychology, what would be a more accurate-if less humorous-statement?

Accepted Answer

A)  "I would most want to belong to any club that would have me." 
B)  "I would most want to belong to a club that made me suffer to get into it." 
C)  "I wouldn't want to join any club at all." 
D)  "I would want to avoid a club that would have me."

Question 4

George just finished a poem and is very proud of his work. He knows he should ask his instructor for some constructive feedback to improve it, but chooses not to because he is afraid of losing his sense of accomplishment. In this case, which basic motive did George give in to?

Accepted Answer

A)  The need to belong 
B)  The need for accuracy 
C)  The need to feel good about oneself 
D)  The need for affiliation

Question 5

Ross and colleagues (2004) found that people playing the Wall Street Game were __________ competitive than people playing the Community Game, __________ of individual differences in competitiveness and cooperativeness.

Accepted Answer

A)  more; because 
B)  more; regardless 
C)  less; because 
D)  less; regardless

Question 6

Of the following, which question is LEAST likely to be asked by a social psychologist?

Accepted Answer

A)  Why are we attracted to some people and not others? 
B)  How can we influence others to think like we do? 
C)  At what age do we gain the ability to walk? 
D)  How might advertising be used to get more people to recycle?

Question 7

Liberman, Samuels, and Ross (2004) randomly assigned participants previously identified as cooperative or competitive to play a game that was labeled either the Wall Street Game or the Community Game. If their results had indicated that, no matter what the game, participants who were identified as competitive behaved more competitively in both groups than did participants who were identified as cooperative, these findings would have suggested that __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  seemingly minor aspects of a social situation can override personality differences 
B)  cooperation and competition are based on personality characteristics that are consistent across social situations 
C)  competitive participants in the Wall Street Game caused their partners to respond in kind 
D)  cooperative participants in the Community Game caused their partners to respond in kind

Question 8

Which of the following is the best synonym for "construal"?

Accepted Answer

A)  conclude 
B)  believe 
C)  interpret 
D)  judge

Question 9

According to the authors of your text, when faced with a puzzling social question, it may be tempting to ask people why they behaved as they did. Why is this not always the best way to understand social behavior?

Accepted Answer

A)  People almost always lie when they are interviewed. 
B)  People would feel defensive, even when asked benign questions. 
C)  People would not necessarily know why they behaved as they did. 
D)  People would simply answer randomly.

Question 10

The scientific study of the way in which people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the real or imagined presence of other people is the definition of __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  psychology 
B)  personality psychology 
C)  social psychology 
D)  sociology

Question 11

Social psychologists and personality psychologists share what common goal?

Accepted Answer

A)  Understanding individual differences 
B)  Understanding how the presence of others influences people 
C)  Understanding people who are mentally ill 
D)  Understanding causes of human behavior

Question 12

Shanika is an executive, and asked her assistant repeatedly to make some copies for her. The assistant repeatedly failed to successfully complete the assignment. If Shanika is thinking like a social psychologist about this situation, what is she most likely to think about her assistant?

Accepted Answer

A)  "My assistant is incompetent and I should fire him immediately." 
B)  "All of my subordinates are incompetent." 
C)  "I am the only intelligent person in this office." 
D)  "Perhaps my assistant is under stress from something else."

Question 13

When Monique plays checkers with her younger sister, she lets her sister win. When she plays with her older brother, she does everything she can to beat him. A social psychologist would suggest that __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  Monique's personality is unstable 
B)  Monique is ambivalent in how she feels about her siblings 
C)  Monique is responding to different social situations 
D)  Monique is blindly obedient to the rules of the game

Question 14

Jacob was pouring gravy when he dropped the ladle and splattered it all over the tablecloth. In order to maintain his self-esteem, Jacob decided that __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  he was a clumsy person 
B)  spilling the gravy was embarrassing to his family 
C)  the ladle was slippery and anyone would have dropped it 
D)  he would be more careful next time

Question 15

One potential problem of justifying past behavior in order to protect our self-esteem is that __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  people tend to become narcissistic 
B)  people distort reality and deny any negative information about themselves 
C)  it hinders people from learning from their past mistakes 
D)  it leads people to present themselves as being better than they really are

Question 16

Garry is a physician and is convinced that his patient Mr. Mraz has cancer. However, after several diagnostic tests and a biopsy that came back negative, Garry rethinks his original diagnosis. He admits that he was wrong and does more research to find the correct diagnosis. In this case, which basic motive did Garry give in to?

Accepted Answer

A)  The need for accuracy 
B)  The need to feel good about oneself 
C)  The need for meaning 
D)  The need for control

Question 17

Lee Ross describes the idea of "naïve realism" as the __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  conviction we all have that we perceive things "as they really are" 
B)  scientific study of the way in which people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the real or imagined presence of other people 
C)  way in which people perceive, comprehend, and interpret the social world 
D)  aspects of people's personalities that make them different from other people

Question 18

After the mass suicide related to the cult at Jonestown, people tended to blame the victims and accuse them of being psychologically unstable or deranged. Social psychologists are more likely to explain these mass suicides as being due to __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  individual differences, such as antisocial personality 
B)  mental illness in most of the cult members 
C)  the social influence of cult leaders 
D)  the imagined presence of an all-powerful deity

Question 19

Aidan is trying to decide who would be the better roommate, Yushi or Lamar. Yushi has lots of money and a flat-screen TV to add to the apartment, but Lamar is really fun to hang out with. Aidan doesn't know other things, such as how tidy they are or how loud they are at night, but has to make his decision soon. This best illustrates which challenge of accurate social cognition?

Accepted Answer

A)  People usually make emotional decisions. 
B)  People usually don't know all of the facts. 
C)  People are rarely motivated to be accurate. 
D)  People are more concerned with self-esteem.

Question 20

When we commit the fundamental attribution error, we __________ the power of __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  overestimate; the situation 
B)  overestimate; personal influence 
C)  underestimate; personality characteristics 
D)  underestimate; personal motivations

Exam 1: Introducing Social Psychology